Well this was one of the most challenging rehomes we've done, with everything that could go wrong, going wrong! These ladies were called Salt & Pepper. They were meant to be 'micro' pigs but  were taken on by a youth hostel when they got too big. Unfortunately the management were unhappy with how much the girls were costing once COVID started to affect finances. They were actually booked for slaughter just before Lockdown but thankfully the Lockdown postponed that fate. Unfortunately they escaped when the place was closed during Lockdown and dug up a lot of the land which put them even further in the bad books. Some members of the team there decided they wanted to try and save the girls before Lockdown ended and slaughter was booked again. They approached us for help.

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Unfortunately as our post about them got shared, even though it didn't indicate where the pigs were, some people worked it out and sent abusive messages to the hostel. At that point the management refused to allow us to continue to help and there was nothing more we could do. (As a result we are now extra careful posting about pigs that are at risk of slaughter not to include anything identifying, such as their names or general location.) The person we were dealing with let us know after a while that it looked like a home had been found.

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But some time after we received a message from another person saying the pigs were now booked for slaughter again  the following week and could we help. Obviously it was a bit tricky as at this stage as we weren't allowed to officially help and we had to do things quietly behind the scenes. However due to the publicity raised by the people now trying to help, the slaughterman refused to attend. We then had it confirmed that  slaughter wouldn’t go ahead but of course they needed a new home quickly. Another home was urgently found by the people trying to help them but first they lost their keys to the trailer, then the  ladies refused the transport and then we realised there set up wasn't really suitable and they changed their minds anyway!

So finally officially we were helping. But it didn't go smoothly over the next few days. We were impacted by human availability at both ends, a family medical emergency preventing the foster home we had lined up from taking them, transport availability, delays with Defra paperwork, and then a mechanical issue on the way down and difficulty getting the pigs to go in the trailer. BUT, we did it! Brinsley Animal Rescue agreed to take them when we asked at the last minute because our other options had fallen apart and we couldn't have been happier to see the girls settle in to a safe space from which they will be rehomed by Brinsley to a suitably vetted home.

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I don't think we'll ever forget this rehoming experience!

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